Forest clearances, compensatory afforestation and biodiversity offsetting in forests: Balancing flexibility and equivalency in Switzerland

Abstract

The settlement area is expanding at the cost of agricultural land in densely populated regions such as Central Europe. This development is also affecting the forest. Forest clearances due to, e.g. traffic and energy infrastructure development, require afforestation elsewhere but surfaces providing appropriate soil are increasingly scarce. Switzerland is an important case in point. It is densely populated, exhibits a large amount of forest – also in the lowlands – and although it features a strong forest protection law, it recently all Show more